Intel and USB: Make it Easier to Connect Devices to PCs

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Intel and USB - Helping make it easier to connect devices to PCs

Intel and USB: Make It Easier to Connect Devices to PCs

Intel and USB Helping make it easier to connect devices to PCs

What is USB?

The Universal Serial Bus (USB) is the most successful interface in the history of personal computing. It has migrated heavily into mobile and consumer electronics (CE) segments and also met with great success there. A serial bus standard for conne...cting external and internal devices to a computer, USB is designed to allow many peripherals to be connected using a single standardized interface socket. Intel helped develop the original USB standard and continues to contribute to its advancement.

USB improves "plug and play" capabilities by enabling hot swapping — the connection and disconnection of devices without rebooting the computer or turning off the device. Other convenient USB features include:• Providing power to low power consumption devices so there's no need for an external power supply or battery charger• Allowing devices to charge their batteries over USB• Enabling many devices to be used without the installation of manufacturer-specific device drivers

Today USB is used to connect a wide range of computer peripherals, such as mice, keyboards, gamepads, cell phones, PDAs, printers, scanners, digital cameras and camcorders, personal media players, flash drives, and external hard drives. For these devices, USB is the most common connection method. As of 2008, there are 6 billion USB products in the install base and the industry is shipping more than 2 billion units per year — and this number continues to grow.